When the body breaks down hemoglobin in red blood cells, it creates byproducts—kryptopyrroles (KPU), and hydroxyhemopyrrolin-2-one (HPL). Most people excrete these in the urine without a problem—but in some cases, they accumulate. This is a problem, because pyrroles and HPL bind to Vitamin B6, and to zinc, causing deficiencies. The [...]
Gas, bloating, alternating constipation and diarrhea are often grouped under the general diagnosis of “IBS” (Irritable Bowel Syndrome). But IBS is a diagnosis that merely describes symptoms—it doesn’t identify the cause. There are many possible causes of IBS, including dysbiosis (overgrowth of bad gut flora), yeast overgrowth, SIBO, food sensitivities, parasites, [...]
I wrote here on parasitic infections generally. But according to the CDC, there are five parasitic diseases on the “Neglected Parasitic Infection” list, worth paying attention to because they are both relatively common, and preventable—though some are more easily treated than others, once contracted. Toxoplasmosis Perhaps best known as a disease [...]
Last week I wrote here on the association between blood type and gastric acid secretion. The conclusion was that Blood Type O produces the highest amount of gastric acid—especially secretors (people with the FUT2 gene that means they secrete their blood type into other types of bodily fluids besides just [...]
From Dr. Lauren Deville - Naturopathic Doctor
Hypertension, or high blood pressure, means that the heart has to push harder than it should to get the blood to the entire body. There are two blood pressure numbers: systolic (the top number) and diastolic (the bottom number). Systolic indicates the pressure at the heart’s maximum contraction, while diastolic indicates the remaining pressure when [...]
From Dr. Lauren Deville - Naturopathic Doctor
About 50% of women experience “baby blues,” or a brief period of mild depression for a few days to a few weeks after giving birth. But 10-20% will suffer more severe postpartum depression. Every pregnant woman has very high levels of hormones (estrogen, progesterone, prolactin, and oxytocin) when pregnant, and these hormones plummet precipitously after [...]
From Dr. Lauren Deville - Naturopathic Doctor
I wrote here on the basic theory of what inflammation is. Briefly: in initial stages, inflammation is part of non-specific immunity. It just means something hurts and your immune system calls all hands on deck to deal with it. In later stages, inflammation becomes specific: this means your immune system is carefully targeting a specific invader, [...]
From Dr. Lauren Deville - Naturopathic Doctor
The power of naturopathic medicine is in the philosophy: remove obstacles to cure and give the body the building blocks it needs to heal itself, and within reason, healing will follow. I prefer not to give supplements to treat symptoms, because that approach doesn’t get to the root cause… but in the short term, sometimes [...]
From Dr. Lauren Deville - Naturopathic Doctor
Oxygen is probably the most fundamental building block necessary for health, and it’s certainly the one without which we’d die quickest. Individual tissues will become infected and die for lack of oxygen, too—which can occur with poor blood flow. With just suboptimal oxygen levels, you'll feel fatigued, lethargic, and short of breath. Oxygen as a therapy [...]
From Dr. Lauren Deville - Naturopathic Doctor
Food cravings are quite common—according to this study of a thousand college students, 97% of women and 68% of men experience them, on average two to four times per week. (Chocolate was the most commonly craved food, if you were wondering—especially among the women. Shocking, I know.) But why do cravings happen in the first [...]
